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Escape from Monkey Island
Mac OS PlayStation 2 |genre=Graphic adventure |modes=Single-player |ratings= |media=Optical disc |requirements=200 MHz CPU, 32 MB RAM, 4 MB video card, DirectX version 7.0a or higher }}Escape from Monkey Island is a computer adventure game developed and released by LucasArts in 2000. It is the fourth game in the ''Monkey Island'' series and the first one to use 3D graphics. The game centers on the pirate Guybrush Threepwood, who returns home with his wife Elaine Marley after their honeymoon, to find her erroneously declared dead, and her office of governor up for election. Guybrush must find a way to restore Elaine to office, while uncovering a plot to turn the Caribbean into a tourist trap, headed by his archnemesis LeChuck and an Australian conspirator Ozzie Mandrill. Escape was the last of LucasArts' adventure games to be released. It was also the second and last game to use the GrimE engine, which was upgraded from its first use in Grim Fandango. Gameplay Escape from Monkey Island is an adventure game that consists of dialogue with characters and solving puzzles. The game is controlled entirely with the keyboard or alternatively with a joystick, making it the only non-point-and-click game in the Monkey Island series. A feature of the game are action-lines: Guybrush will glance at any items that can be interacted with; the player can use 'Page Up' or 'Page Down' to select the item that he wants Guybrush to look at. One of the hallmark aspects of the Monkey Island games, the insult swordfighting — the sword duels which were won by knowing the appropriate insults and responses — is briefly touched upon in the game as "insult armwrestling", and in an unwinnable insult duel against Ozzie Mandrill. In the second part of the game, the insult games are replaced by "Monkey Kombat", the name being a parody of Mortal Kombat with a symbol to match. Monkey Kombat is a sub-game akin to rock-paper-scissors, where you need to memorize lines of "monkey insults and retorts" which consist of per-game randomized compositions of "monkey words" like "oop", "chee", "ack" and "eek". Story The game begins with Guybrush Threepwood and Elaine Marley returning to Mêlée Island from their honeymoon, which they embarked on in the epilogue of The Curse of Monkey Island. Here they find that Elaine has been declared officially dead, her position as governor has been revoked and her mansion is scheduled to be demolished. The governorship is up for election, and suddenly a person known as Charles L. Charles presents himself as the lead candidate. As Elaine begins her campaign to recover her position, Guybrush hires navigator Ingacius Cheese in a game of insult arm-wrestling, meets again with two of his old "friends", Carla and Otis, and heads out to Lucre Island to recover the Marley family heirlooms and obtain the legal documents to save her mansion. During his trip, Guybrush learns of the Marley family's greatest secret: a voodoo talisman known as the Ultimate Insult, which contains an insult so insidious, it destroys the spirit of those who hear it. He also winds up being framed for bank robbery by crook Peg-Nosed Pete at the hiring of the Australian land developer Ozzie Mandrill, but manages to prove his innocence. After acquiring the legal deeds and returning to the manor, Guybrush and Elaine soon discover that Charles L. Charles is really the shape-shifting Demon Pirate LeChuck, having been freed from his ice prison of the last game and seeking the Ultimate Insult. As Elaine continues her campaign, Guybrush searches the Jambalaya and Knuttin Atoll islands and recovers the pieces of the Ultimate Insult. Upon returning home, he is ambushed by LeChuck and Ozzie Mandrill, who steal the pieces from him. The two villains are revealed to be working together, Ozzie to rid of all pirates and turn the area into a resort and LeChuck out of debt to Ozzie for freeing him from the icy tomb and to use the Ultimate Insult to break Elaine and marry her. Feeling they might need Guybrush as a hostage, the two decide to dump him on Monkey Island. Despite temporary discouragement, Guybrush sets about making his escape. He learns the art of Monkey Kombat from the "monkey prince of Monkey Island" and, upon restoring the hermit Herman Toothrot's memory, discovers that the old man is actually Elaine's missing grandfather, having contracted amnesia twenty years prior due to being pushed into a whirlpool off the coast of Australia by Ozzie. After constructing an even bigger Ultimate Insult, Guybrush discovers that the colossal monkey head statue of the island hides a giant pilot-able monkey robot. He reactivates the Mecha and powers it and Herman and the island's monkeys join him in piloting it. With the robot, Guybrush manages to disable an Ultimate Insult amplifier made by Ozzie before returning to Mêlée. During this time, Ozzie has managed to capture Elaine and assemble the Ultimate Insult. When it appears to fail due to the lack of the amplifier, LeChuck takes matters into his own hands and possesses a statue of himself he had built shortly after his gubernatorial victory. Ozzie uses the Ultimate Insult to take control of LeChuck's statue form and engages Guybrush's monkey robot in Monkey Kombat. During the duel, Guybrush performs repeated ties, allowing Elaine to escape and causing LeChuck to smack his head in exasperation, crushing Ozzie and destroying the Ultimate Insult. LeChuck then explodes. Guybrush and Elaine are reunited and Grandpa Marley resumes being the governor of Mêlée Island, so that the couple can go back to being pirates. Development The game was made with Sean Clark and Michael Stemmle as lead designers, both of whom worked on LucasArts' previous adventure titles Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis and Sam & Max Hit the Road. Sean Clark also worked on Loom and The Dig. Escape uses a slightly improved version of the GrimE engine introduced by Grim Fandango. Compared to the rest of the series, the SCUMM scripting language was replaced by the Lua programming language (This is referenced in-game; the SCUMM Bar, which first appeared in The Secret of Monkey Island, has been replaced in Escape with the tropical-themed Lua Bar). A new version of the iMUSE interactive music system incorporating MP3 compression, among other changes, was built and used for the game. Interactive programming of the music and ambiance streams in the iMUSE system was done by lead sound designer Larry the O. Escape's introductory music is identical to that of the third game, unlike the earlier sequels which featured newly-composed remixes of the well-known Monkey Island theme. The soundtrack itself consisted of pieces from five composers: Michael Land (who wrote the music for the previous Monkey Island games), Peter McConnell, Clint Bajakian, Anna Karney, and Michael Lande (often confused with Michael Land).Larry the O personal files, by permission The voice cast saw the return of Dominic Armato as Guybrush, Earl Boen as LeChuck, Leilani Jones Wilmore as the Voodoo Lady and Denny Delk as Murray. The only major voice not to return was Alexandra Boyd who voiced Elaine in the previous game. She was replaced by Charity James. Stan is also voiced by a different actor, Pat Fraley. Additionally, characters who had previously appeared in The Secret of Monkey Island such as Carla, Otis and Herman Toothrot, are heard with voice actors for the first time. The game was also released on PlayStation 2 in 2001. Apart from obvious control differences, the PS2 version only varies by a slightly higher polygon count and use of less pre-rendered material. Escape is the second Monkey Island game to have a console release, with The Secret of Monkey Island being the first as it was also released for the Sega CD. Popular culture references * The title of the first chapter "Things to do on Mêlée Island When You're Dead" is a parody of the film and song title Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead. * The game includes many Star Wars references, such as mentioning the character Obi-Wan Kenobi, Guybrush once saying "I sense a disturbance in the Force", and asking for Jar Jar's help in the scene after the game's credits. * When Guybrush walks by the grassy knoll on Lucre Island, he says, "I better get out of here before I'm accused of another crime I didn't commit," a reference to the grassy knoll of Dealey Plaza and the John F. Kennedy assassination. If you try to use it, he says "Triangulation of crossfire. That's the key!", a line reused from a similar joke in the previous game. * When Guybrush sits in the bench in Lucre Island, he pronounces a sentence that is reminiscent of the film Forrest Gump. * If you examine the Iron Maiden in the jail on Lucre Island, Guybrush will exclaim "Iron Maiden, excellent!", followed by "...I have no idea why I just said that". This is a reference to the film Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure and the band Iron Maiden. * When Guybrush follows Ozzie up to the secret basement in jungle and the Australian goes back into his mansion, Guybrush hides in the grass and says to the player: "Be vewy vewy quiet. I'm hunting ozzies." This is a reference to a catchphrase by Looney Tunes character Elmer Fudd, "Be vewy vewy quiet, I'm hunting wabbits!". * At one point, Guybrush has to go to a coffee shop called Starbuccaneer's, a parody of Starbucks. Also, Planet Hollywood is parodied as Planet Threepwood. * When examining shark jaw bones on Knuttin Atoll, Guybrush yells: "Land Shark!" - a reference to the Land Shark character from Saturday Night Live. * When Guybrush examines the brass monkey in the Lua Bar kitchen, he says, "Hey a brass monkey". This is responded with an unseen crowd of people yelling "that funky monkey!". This is a reference to the Beastie Boys song "Brass Monkey". * When Guybrush uses the Rat in the Lua Bar kitchen, he says, "So what are you gonna do tomorrow night?", replying to himself "The same thing we do every night - TRY TO TAKE OVER THE CARIBBEAN!". It is a reference to the Pinky and the Brain animated series. * Monkey Kombat, a feature in the third act of the game is a parody of Mortal Kombat, a line of fighting games. * When Guybrush wins a duel of Monkey Kombat, he starts dancing using Michael Jackson's dance moves, including the moonwalk. * When Ozzie pieces together the Ultimate Insult, he states "Look upon my works, ye mighty pirates, and despair!!!". This is a reference a line in the sonnet Ozymandias: "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!". In fact, Ozzie Mandrill's name is a parody of the name Ozymandias. Reception | EuroG = 9/10http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/r_emi_pc |GSpot = 8.1 of 10 | IGN = 8.7/10 |PCZone = 8.2 of 10 | |GR =83% |MC = 86 of 100 |MG = 79 of 100 }} Critical response The game was met with a generally favorable reception. The gameplay received criticism for its interface and the difficulty of keyboard or joystick control as compared to mouse controls. The "Monkey Kombat" was also criticized, with the Gamespot review stating that "unfortunately Monkey Kombat may be the single biggest problem with Escape from Monkey Island". Another reviewer speculated that "Perhaps the designers figured that combining insult fighting, cute monkeys, and a Mortal Kombat spoof would work well, but it didn't".UHS: Escape from Monkey Island Review Awards *E3 2000 Game Critics Awards: Best Action/Adventure Game References External links * * [http://www.lucasarts.com/products/monkey4/index_net.html Official Escape from Monkey Island website] at LucasArts (currently down) * * Escape from Monkey Island at MIwiki Category:Video Games Category:Monkey Island Category:Media